Resources

Charter schools are subject to New York Municipal Law Sections 800-806. Charters, therefore must have codes of ethics and conflict of interest policies. In addition, after New York State enacted the Non-Profit Revitalization Act of 2013, schools must also have whistle-blower policies. See below for some exemplars. Schools should continue to consult with their own counsel when creating these policies.

New York State’s law on charter schools has changed in important ways. In addition to raising the statewide cap on charter schools, the revised law has implications for charter school approvals, renewals, governance, programs, enrollment, facilities, and more.

Emergencies in schools must be addressed in an expeditious and effective manner. Schools are at risk of acts of violence, natural, and manmade disasters. To address these threats, the State of New York has enacted the Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (SAVE) law. Project SAVE is a comprehensive planning effort that addresses prevention, response and recovery with respect to a variety of emergencies in schools.

Individual charter schools are required by the NYSED to complete 2 safety plans: a District- Wide Safety Plan and a Building-Level Safety Plan. These plans differ as defined here taken directly from the NY Safe Schools website.

How do the funding levels compare, and the funding streams interact, for New York City charter and district schools? The City's Independent Budget Office (IBO) has issued three analyses on this topic, to which the Charter Center has responded with increasing, detailed criticism. The NYC Department of Education has also raised strong objections.

All New York charter schools are subject to the requirements of New York State's Freedom of Information Law (FOIL). FOIL is a New York State law that provides the public an avenue to access certain records of public agencies, and it explicitly applies to charters under the Charter Schools Act of 1998.

The Charter Center’s Vendor List is one of the many ways in which we help schools share resources with one another. Last year alone, there were 11,000 hits on over 300 businesses recommended by NY charter schools. We’d like to remind you that all vendors on the list have not only worked with a charter school, but have also received a written recommendation from one or more charters.